[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 61 (Wednesday, May 17, 2006)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4689-S4690]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



  (At the request of Mr. Reid, the following statement was ordered to 
be printed in the Record.)

                           TAX RECONCILIATION

 Mr. ROCKEFELLER. Mr. President, I regret that rehabilitation 
following back surgery prevented me from being on the floor to cast my 
vote against the tax reconciliation package which the Senate narrowly 
approved on May 11. Today President Bush will sign that bill into law, 
and I would like to take this opportunity to share my thoughts with my 
constituents and my colleagues. I am extremely disturbed by the 
Nation's fiscal mismanagement over the past several years, and this new 
tax cut bill was another disappointing step in the wrong direction.
  On February 2, I voted for the Senate's version of the tax 
reconciliation bill. That legislation protected middle-class taxpayers 
from the alternative minimum tax and extended some widely supported tax 
provisions that recently expired. The Senate bill also included 
urgently needed incentives for

[[Page S4690]]

investment in mine safety equipment and technology. I was pleased to 
support that bill.
  Unfortunately, as I feared, during negotiations with the House, the 
reasonable compromise struck in the Senate was abandoned. The final tax 
package that the conference committee produced has the wrong priorities 
and will make America's fiscal situation substantially worse.
  Middle-class relief from the alternative minimum tax expired at the 
end of last year. The conference report extends AMT relief through 2006 
but does nothing about next year when millions of families will face an 
enormous tax increase. Additionally, the bill does not include the tax 
provisions, which I have long supported, that help average West 
Virginians. Tax cuts which benefit families paying college tuition, 
schoolteachers buying supplies, and businesses investing in research 
and development were simply not included in this bill. These provisions 
have already expired, meaning taxpayers will be hit with higher taxes 
this year. I recognize that the Senate majority leader has indicated 
his intention to address these issues later this year, and I will 
continue to advocate for extension of these important provisions. 
However, I believe it is irresponsible not to make tax cuts for middle-
class families our top priority.
  Instead of addressing these urgent priorities, the bill acts to 
extend tax cuts for investors that were not even set to expire until 
2009. I cannot understand why tax cuts that primarily benefit taxpayers 
with more than $200,000 in income would get a higher priority than tax 
relief for middle-class families. Unfortunately, in West Virginia, very 
few taxpayers have been able to benefit from the investor tax cuts 
enacted in 2003. Fewer than 17 percent of taxpayers reported any 
dividend income, and fewer than 11 percent of our taxpayers had any 
capital gains subject to tax.
  I am also extremely disturbed by the budget gimmicks used in order to 
comply with the Senate's rules designed to impose fiscal discipline. By 
taking advantage of unusual revenue effects, this bill amazingly pays 
for tax cuts with yet more tax cuts. But without question, we are 
digging ourselves deeper in debt with such games. In the long run, this 
bill will cost us even more than the $70 billion its sponsors claim. 
And because so many important issues have been left unaddressed, 
Congress will need to enact additional tax cuts this year. This fiscal 
mismanagement increases our borrowing from foreign nations and 
increases the burden on our future generations.
  Finally, I would like to mention the 18 miners in West Virginia, as 
well as those in other States, who lost their lives this year and their 
devastated families, friends, and communities. I am deeply disappointed 
that this agreement does not include the bipartisan mine safety 
amendment, which I worked so hard to include in the Senate bill. That 
amendment would have encouraged mine companies to invest in additional 
mine safety equipment and training and, most importantly, would have 
saved lives. This is a provision which cannot wait, and I will continue 
to push to have this provision enacted. The well-being and safety of 
miners demands it. 

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